10.04.2010. Sad day for Poland

[Ernest]

Today, President of Poland, First Lady, as well as another 86 people of polish delegacy, president guards & crew members were killed in an plane accident which occured near Smolensk airport in Russia. They was going to visit the 70th-years anniversary of massacre in Katyn, where around 20.000 polish officers were killed during WWII. Sad symbolic coincidence...

Thousands of polish people came today near the Presidental Palace to lighten up the lamps, lay down some flowers and give back some respect.

[Ernest]

So, here's couple photos from today, President were carried back to Warsaw, probably tomorrow the coffin will be displayed.

Thousands of people was waiting on the route from Warsaw airport to the Presidental Palace:











In the evening, the area near Palace was literally "floating" in lights, flags and flowers...:







Hopefully tomorrow some next photos.
Cheers.

[eob]

This is a real tragedy of the scale previously unknown to any nation. Great portion of the government, heads of all three branches of the military, members of the Parliament, heads of banks and clergy, wiped out in one accident that should be totally preventable. The history of Poland seems to be repeatedly out of favor when it comes to Katyn.

The series of photos above shows quite convincingly the shock and anguish of people of Warsaw in response to this unheard of loss. And we Poles are not always very sympathetic to the ruling class...

[Ernest]

I have some more photos, i would love to receive some feedback.





Caravan with the coffin with body of the First Lady is arriving to the Presidental Palace:







Portrait of The First Lady:









30 bodies back to Warsaw Military Airport, then together were carried to the Torwar arena, where all of the families had the opportunity to bid them farewell:

[aprilS]

I have some more photos, i would love to receive some feedback.

As someone who feels for the terrible loss of life, but is on the outside of a country's tragedy, it's interesting to look for those photos which give me an insight into what it means for the people.

I just realized not all the images have a title or reference, so it's hard to refer to them individually. But one of my favorites has the caption: "In the evening, the area near Palace was literally "floating" in lights, flags and flowers...:" Along with the b&w of a lady with the handbag lighting a candle.

The first two distorted and Dutch angle views from the second series intrigue me, because they suggest the way their world has been pulled out of shape. The second especially emphasizes the feeling of being pulled down by sorrow.

One thing I notice I react against, excepting #1 above, are images which include photographers. Though it is a huge event which must be reported, that creates a distance for me.

[Ernest]

Thank you.
It was some kind of mass-tragedy. There were thousands of people on the streets. Never seen something like that before.

There was really big amount of photographers also, so sometimes it was hard not to get them into the crop...